On Feb 3rd 2016 (Beijing Time), China National Chemical Corporation (“ChemChina”) has announced that it has agreed to acquire the Swiss agrochemical and seeds company Syngenta by way of a public tender offer.
In the past 3 months, it is said that Monsanto is also interested in acquising Syngenta, but ChemChina and Syngenta have finally reached the acquisition agreement in which the Board of Directors of Syngenta AG (“Syngenta” or the “Company”) unanimously recommends ChemChina's offer to purchase 100% of Syngenta’s equity. The offer price is USD 465 per share in cash. In addition, the offer will allow the payment of a special dividend of CHF 5 payable immediately before closing, subject to the approval of Syngenta's shareholders. The intended offer values Syngenta’s total outstanding share capital at USD 43 billion. The acquisition is subject to anti-trust reviews and approvals from relevant countries.
At the end of 2015, there is a saying that some of the board disagreed to accept ChemChina’s acquisition since they think ChemChina may interrupt Syngenta’s sustainable development principle. However, in ChemChina’s declaration ChemChina commits to supporting Syngenta to further pursue these goals and will be fully supportive of Syngenta’s intactness in its operations, management and employees, including keeping its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. Previously, ChemChina has successfully acquired 9 leading industrial companies in France, United Kingdom, Israel, Italy and Germany, etc. This acquisition is the largest overseas acquisition for both ChemChina and Chinese enterprises. Once the acquisition is finalized, ChemChina will become the largest pesticide and agrochemical provider.
